Vikings sign Ameer Abdullah, waive Blake Brandel, elevate two from practice squad
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By: Christopher Gates
A good sign for Dalvin Cook?
On Saturday, the Minnesota Vikings made several roster moves, at least a couple of which might point to the status of one of their star players for this Sunday.
The team has announced that they have once again signed running back Ameer Abdullah to the 53-man roster. After being released as part of the team’s final cuts, Abdullah has been on the Vikings’ active roster for all three of their games this year. He was “elevated” from the practice squad before the opener and now has been signed to the 53 for each of the past two weeks.
To make room for Abdullah on the roster, the team waived offensive tackle Blake Brandel. Brandel was serving as the swing tackle with Rashod Hill starting at left tackle because of Christian Darrisaw’s injury. The move leaves the Vikings without a designated backup tackle for Hill or Brian O’Neill, though both Ezra Cleveland and Oli Udoh could potentially play tackle in a pinch.
This may also seem to indicate that Darrisaw is finally close to taking the field, which would make Hill the swing tackle starting next week.
The team has also elevated guard Dakota Dozier and cornerback Parry Nickerson to the active roster from the practice squad.
All of these moves, particularly choosing not to bring running back A.J. Rose up from the practice squad, seems to point to star running back Dalvin Cook. Cook did not practice all week and was listed as “questionable” on the team’s final injury report of the week. With Abdullah’s elevation, the Vikings now have three running backs on the roster in Cook, Abdullah, and Alexander Mattison. If the Vikings didn’t think Cook would be able to go, they likely would have used one of their elevations to bring Rose up to the 53 to serve as a backup.
We’ll know more when the Vikings and the Seahawks take the field a little less than 24 hours from now. However, the early indicators seem to be that #33 will be taking his usual spot in the Minnesota backfield tomorrow afternoon.
